The Apprisal
by myBlueprints
Summary: 3 people tell Ichabod that he loves Abbie, and 2 people that tell Abbie that she loves Ichabod. Complete at last!
1. Chapter 1

He's definitely a surprise.

'You?' Jenny frowns, asking in surprise, 'What are you doing here?' Not that he shouldn't be here, but he just shouldn't. Well, not really anyway. She doesn't know one person who would move around in the current weather state, not one. But apparently, he's an exception.

'Miss Jenny,' Ichabod Crane bows his head a fraction, clearly not understanding what her manner means, 'How are you doing?'

'What are you doing here?' she asks again as though she didn't hear him speak. It's terrible weather outside, and she doesn't want to think what he's had to go through when the taxi dropped him off. In fact, she doesn't have to think about it, she's looking at the proof in front of her. His face is seven ways of frozen, with his lips a poor excuse of a line. He doesn't look good at all.

'May I come in?' he asks through chattering teeth. Realising her mistake, Jenny pulls him inside the house. Her hand meets only ice cold material, she pulls it away immediately, 'Gosh,' she says rubbing her hands together to restore heat into her hand, 'You're frozen.'

'It's welcomingly warm in here,' Ichabod says as he steps further into the home Jenny lives with her sister.

'What are you doing here?' Jenny doesn't know what would drive her sister's sidekick-slash-friend-slash-not-romantically-involved-significant-other, to travel in such weather all the way from the deep woods (leaving his wife behind), to the centre of town.

'Does my presence bother you?' he turns to Jenny.

'No,' she tells him honestly, because it's not his presence that bothers her, it's the why he's risking his life going around in hazardous weather, especially if he travelled by car.

'I just don't understand why you are here in such bad conditions,' she explains.

'I'm here to see your sister,' he tells her.

'Abbie's got some like big cold or flu, I don't think she wants to see anyone.' The previous night, Abbie had been complaining about a sore throat, and earlier this morning, she begsn sneezing and going through tissues like she had persistent nasal diarrhoea.

'I'm aware that she isn't feeling well,' he tells her, his tone a shade of bossiness.

'That's why you're here isn't it?' she asks quietly. In her head, she'd doing the maths. Ichabod, and bad weather. Minus wife. Plus Abbie. Multiply by the look in his face, and the urgent manner about him. Jenny starts smiling.

'Of course,' he nods, 'I couldn't leave her be alone at such a perilous time.' His words are translated as, 'I want to take care of her.' She wants to feel annoyed that he doesn't think she can take care of Abbie, but all she feels is warmth and adoration for the man who wants to take care of her sister when he has a wife at home (a little huge disturbing fact in this moment).

'She's not alone,' Jenny says to him, 'I'm here. And she's not dying or anything, it's just a flu. You know that right?' She's known people to exaggerate about a common cold, but he has taken it to the extremes, going through terrible weather just to make sure he is with her.

'She doesn't need to be dying for me to be by her side,' Ichabod answers her. Jenny gets the feeling that she's struck a nerve, or near one, whatever she's done, he doesn't agree with it. A light turns on inside her as she watches his face.

'Oh my gosh,' she says, 'You so love my sister.' No matter how he may try to deny it, he does, maybe not extremely tragically, but he does.

'I beg your pardon?' Ichabod doesn't know what Jenny's talking about. She doesn't blame him, he's married and he loves his wife, the possibility of him thinking that he loves Abbie too, is obviously not entertained in his head. To confirm her already confirmed suspicion, she asks Ichabod to follow her, choosing to ignore his question.

'She's sleeping, so be super quiet,' she leads him into the sitting room where Abbie is spread out on the sofa with a blanket over her.

'Abbie?' Ichabod calls gently, as though he's scared she'll break apart if he speaks any louder.

'She's got earphones on. Listening to music,' Jenny explains when he looks at her with a lost countenance.

'Oh,' his mouth form the word. Jenny goes around the sofa, and tries to rouse her sister from sleep. Abbie doesn't stir at first, but Jenny persists.

'Mmmm,' Abbie complains as she opens her eyes. Jenny feels bad for waking her sister, especially when she's this sick.

'There's someone here to see you,' Jenny smiles, her fingers pointing to a frightened Ichabod. The only difference now, is that he's beginning to smile.

'Abbie,' he mentions in the most private of ways. Abbie smiles weakly, so minimally that Jenny wonders she's imagined the smile, yet despite how terrible Abbie looks, her face and eyes are shining with gladness, 'Hi,' Abbie whispers to him.

'Hi,' he replies, a big smile of relief on his face.

Jenny looks between the two of them, and seeing that they are lost in each other, she excuses herself from their presence.


	2. Chapter 2

Captain Frank Irving didn't believe Abigail Mills and strange Ichabod Crane could be apart, in fact, he didn't know it was possible until Quantico contacted him on his private number to request that Abbie be sent over to them for a few days. When he called her into his office, he wasn't in the least surprised to see Crane with her.

'Quantico wants you over there for a few days,' he cut right to business, because it was Abbie, he could always be straight with her.

'Quantico?' Crane asked, his hands behind his back as usual as he exchanged looks with Abbie (Frank considered that they were communicating telepathically), 'The FBI? And why will they be needing her, if I may?'

Frank told them exactly what he'd been told over the phone, nothing. All they'd said was that they wanted her, something about her application was mentioned, but Frank didn't listen to that. He knew that Crane would object with some sort of supernatural reasoning as the cause, and he also knew that he wouldn't accept Abbie going on her own, but somehow (much to Frank's surprise), Abbie convinced him that she would be going and he had to remain behind. Even after they left his office, he didn't really believe Abbie would go through with leaving her Crane behind. Two days later, Abbie boarded a plane, leaving Crane behind in Sleepy Hollow (and apparently, a problem for Frank).

Three days passed since Abbie left for Quantico, and Frank had to admit it hasn't been the same without her. Fortunately, nothing out of the normal police range happened since her departure, meaning he for once didn't have to worry about how to explain supernatural events in his police reports. He was glad for the rest, but the absence of Abbie somehow made the quiet quite unbearable, and so for the fifteenth time since Abbie left, Frank made his way to the so-called office of the Witnesses in search of Crane. On a normal basis, Frank didn't much care to spend time with Crane (or Abbie for that matter, because time with them meant something was wrong and they had to fix it), but he finds himself seeking to be around Crane, having some sort of 'lunch' or discussing something. Frank wasn't entirely sure why he sought to be around Crane, or why he thought he missed Abbie, when they couldn't even be called friends, so he reasoned that he was human, that he didn't want Crane to be alone, seeing as Abbie is his only friend.

'Captain,' Ichabod's voice didn't mirror his face. His voice said he was glad to see Frank, but his face fell so significantly that no one would miss it. Frank knew the reason for this, the poor man expected that it would be Abbie to walk through the door. How he could be so hopeful even after all the times of being disappointed, Frank didn't understand. Every time Frank opened the door, Crane's face would lose the shine it had. It was no different then.

'I thought I'd drop by and see if you needed help,' Frank said from where he was. It was a half truth, he needed company just as much as he thought Crane did. In the strange world that their lives were, true comfort could only be found with each other, even if in silence.

'I'm managing Captain,' Crane answered. He didn't stop what he was doing, probably a little upset that once again, Abbie wasn't the person who just walked in.

'Okay,' Frank nodded slightly, a little disappointed that he would have no actual reason to hang around, 'but if you need anything, you know where my office is.' Frank started to walk out when Crane called him.

'Captain?' The word came out as though he was down to his very last resort, 'Do you have any idea when she's returning?'

Normally, that question would've earned Crane a nicely sarcastic answer, but when Frank looked at the tall man, he found himself face to face with a lost looking person, uncertain and extremely worried. Frank couldn't identify what he was seeing on the other man, but he knew that somehow, it wasn't the ordinary kind of thing to be feeling. He understood that probably Crane had to be feeling out of place, with no one to talk to most of the time, and no one to take him around to all the places, to do the things that he'd grown used to doing, and yet Frank couldn't help thinking that there was more to Crane being overly anxious for her return, the only problem was, he didn't know what that reason was.

'No,' Frank shook his head in sympathy, 'I wasn't informed on how long they wanted her for. Didn't she tell you?'

'Well...she doesn't get the chance to telephone. Apart from the day she left, we have not been in communication as we should, and that worries me.'

Frank raised his eyebrows in half concern, half suspicion, 'You think something happened to her?' Despite his explanation Frank didn't believe Crane was being all that truthful. He pushed that thought away.

Crane frowned then sighed deeply before closing his eyes, 'No,' he said in the smallest voice Frank has ever heard him use, 'I am worried about her that's all.'

'You miss her?' Frank said without thinking, because that was what his brain registered Crane to have said, 'I'm not surprised, you two are never without the other.'

'It is required that we remain together,' Crane started explaining, 'Without the other, we are unable to do much.'

Listening to Crane, Frank was reminded why he so often asked Abbie for explanations instead of him; he had a way of so many things that only served to complicate straightforward things. He also realised that Crane wasn't deliberately not telling him things or leaving them out, because whatever it was that was going on inside him, he didn't know. Frank realised that Crane wasn't aware of how he felt exactly.

'You love her,' Frank said suddenly, as it just occurred to him. He didn't project his voice, but the words reached Crane intact to the last syllable.

'I'm sorry?' Crane's face screwed heavily.

'You love Abbie,' Frank repeated in much the same way he said it the first time. It was clear now, everything was falling into place. Crane loved Abbie, he didn't know, but Frank did, because suddenly, the last days (and the little time he spent in Crane's company) made sense, why he always went around as though he were missing a leg, the way he would constantly look at his phone, and how he arrived bright and early to the precinct. In the beginning, Frank believed that he simply got bored of being at home, but now, he understood everything.

'Captain, I have no idea what you mean.' Truly, the man did look lost, as though Frank had uttered words of insult and warning at the same time.

Frank only smiled, 'I know you don't.' He turned around and walked out of the place before Crane could ask him further.


	3. Chapter 3

'So, you're Abbie's date?' she asks Ichabod, looking at him over a book in her hands.

Macey hasn't spent that much time in the Sleepy Hollow Sheriff's Department to know the people who are under the command of her father, but she does know the small team that's constantly working with him. Jenny, who's super cool; Abbie and the man who's constantly with her, Ichabod. She once asked Jenny why the two of them were always together, and Jenny told her something about a fight against the evil in Sleepy Hollow that she hadn't understood.

'Her date?' he asks, a small crease appearing on his forehead. Macey takes it to mean that he doesn't understand what she means.

'Yeah,' she places her book onto her lap, 'Like you guys have to go to this thing right? That's why

she's getting dressed up, and you look like that.' She's never seen him in anything that wasn't his coat and old-looking clothes, seeing him in a suit is a first for her.

'I assure you,' he tells her while inspecting his attire, 'this is not my choice of dress. It was Miss Mills who suggested I clothe myself in this. And yes, we unfortunately have to attend this event together, but only because it's safer when we are together.'

The young girl doesn't much understand the last part, because it sounds like he's defending himself against an accusation. Afternoons spent in her father's company have taught her how to spot sincerity from reasoning, her dad was that good a teacher.

'You look good,' Macey tells him the truth. Her father looks good in suits too, she thinks, maybe thin men are generally meant to wear suits.

Ichabod smiles widely, absolutely pleased that he has received a compliment from a young girl, 'Thank you, young Miss. I must say I wasn't keen on going around in this, but your words have brought me to feel some comfort.'

'You're so strange,' Macey laughs. It isn't judgement, she's the last person to judge anyone, because as strange as he is, she doesn't mind spending time with him, or Abbie, they are a lot fun to hang around than other adults; the things they argued about always made her laugh, they were too silly to be serious. That is why for the most parts, when she is waiting for her father in the station, she chooses to wait at Abbie's desk. It's always entertaining to listen to the things the two of them debated about.

She sees Abbie coming, 'There she is.' Seeing Abbie in a dress is also a first for her, which is not a surprise, her own mother rarely wears dresses (and that isn't even mentioning herself). Macey supposes that wearing a dress once every seven months makes it all the more worth it.

Ichabod faces the direction Macey is pointing in. Abbie is taking hurried steps to them.

'I'm ready,' Abbie says when she approaches them.

'You look great Abbie,' Macey tells her. It's true, the dress she's wearing is simple and elegant, an olive green that looks extremely good on her.

'Thanks,' she gives Macey a small smile, and then turns to Ichabod, 'You ready?'

Macey looks at Ichabod too, because since Abbie arrived, he hasn't said a single thing. He's only staring at Abbie, and Macey forgets about Abbie for a second. It's strange, she thinks as she looks at him, he doesn't appear to be looking at the physical appearance of Abbie, it seems to her that he's seeing something that she isn't seeing. It's actually fascinating how he's projecting so much from a single stare, and unless she is mistaken, she would assume that he has some bubbling feelings for Abbie. She knows this, because she's seen it with Jenny and her dad, and before that, she saw her mother pretending as though she didn't love her dad. Macey almost smiles.

'What is it?' the little girl asks him innocently.

'Yeah Crane,' Abbie cuts in, 'What is it? Why are you looking at me like that?'

'Ichabod?' she struggles to keep the smile from her voice. She can never say his name without smiling, it's so weird that she loves to say it. But this time, she's smiling for another reason too.

'Hmmm?' he answers, but doesn't take his eyes off Abbie.

'She looks great right?' Macey pokes for an answer. She looks at Abbie who's still waiting for an answer, her eyebrows drawn together and her eyes narrowing under them.

'Oh!' he exclaims lightly (Macey knows that he just snapped out of his reverie). 'Uh, yes. Yes, she looks lovely.'

'I don't believe you,' Abbie folds her arms.

'And why not?' he asks.

'Because it took you ages to say it. If I looked lovely, you would've said so in the beginning.'

Macey waits for him to reply, and once again, she finds herself thinking how great they get along, even in disagreements.

'You think I'm lying?' his voice sounds hurt.

'I'm saying, I don't believe you. Plus we're not going anywhere unless you tell me that I look hot, because I know I do.'

Macey has a good view of both of them from her wheelchair, but she has trouble deciding who has more authority when it comes to their relationship, Abbie or Ichabod. One thing she is certain of though, is that there's something between them, their interactions are too...something, to be ordinary friendship material.

'Abbie,' Macey decides to save Ichabod, 'you really look great, he's not used to seeing you in a dress that's all, it shocked him a little. Right Ichabod?' The young girl hopes that he's never seen Abbie in a dress before.

'Yes,' he responds quickly, 'I was just surprised...rather very surprised. I imagined you would wear trousers.'

'So say that I look breathtaking,' Abbie suggests, her manner a little whiney, but mostly appeased.

Neither Macey, nor Ichabod say anything.

'Crane,' she whines and taps her foot on the floor in impatience.

'You look dazzlingly gorgeous,' he tells her softly yet heartily.

Macey suddenly realises from his answer that he wouldn't lie to Abbie, even if it were to save her life.

Abbie cracks a smile, 'Really?'

He nods, 'Absolutely.'

'Thanks,' she says, her voice back to its usual tone, 'I'll go start the car. Will you bring me coffee?' Abbie starts to leave before he can answer her. Macey watches him watch Abbie until she disappears from sight.

'I think you should tell her,' Macey says. He turns around.

'Tell her what?'

Macey smiles at his confused expression. It took seeing Abbie in a dress for her to notice why they were always together (even with the explanation Jenny gave her).

'That you love her.'

'Who?' His question comes out so genuine that she believes he doesn't know what she's talking about.

'Abbie,' Macey picks up her book from her lap, 'You love Abbie.'

It's that simple. He loves Abbie, everything that has just happened told her that.

'I...' Ichabod starts, but Macey is already paging her book, 'I'm going to get coffee.' For Abbie, Macey thinks with a tiny smile as she hears him walk away, you're going to get coffee for Abbie.


	4. Chapter 4

She won't stop pacing. Her short legs have done more walking in the cabin in five minutes than they have all day combined. Her worry escalated with each minute that passed.

'A mortal soul has no place in the realm of the dead...your life will be in danger.'

Those words are especially the cause of her pacing, if only she'd offered to go with him, she could've helped him, protected him.

'It doesn't change anything Miss Mills.'

The old man has been observing her since the beginning, since before her pacing. Her behaviour around a certain Mr. Crane is most curious. It's as though she feels the constant need to protect him from everyone around them. She doesn't keep much space between herself and Mr. Crane, she looks at him every twenty seconds (and he did the same), her care for him couldn't be hidden if she tried. Henry Parish almost can't believe how oblivious she is.

'Excuse me?' she halts on the spot.

A small smile dances around his lips, 'What you are thinking doesn't change anything,' he repeats.

He's never considered what he has as a gift, how could it be that taking on the sins and burdens of others was a gift? For others perhaps, but not for him. What he's really thought of as a gift, is the intricate ability he has to discern the patterns of the heart when he makes contact with a person. He's only done it once with her, made contact, but it was enough to read her.

Her eyebrows raise as though she's challenging him, 'And what am I thinking?'

He laughs, an actual warm laugh, 'You're thinking you should've gone with him. Thinking that doesn't change that he's gone, that you can't help him.' The small woman frowns, 'How did you know I was thinking that?'

'You are pacing too much. It's as though you don't trust he will return...Miss Mills are you perhaps afraid that he won't return to you?'

Henry has met a multitude of people in his life, but he's never met anyone like Miss Mills before. He's become quite fond of her. She doesn't show her weakness, yet can be sensitive and valiant at the same time. Also, she's very good at hiding what she feels, but her face is very expressive.

'Return to me? He wouldn't be returning to me...he'd just be returning.' She says it with such a manner of obviousness that he would believe it completely. Would...he doesn't.

'Miss Mills,' he sighs sadly (he didn't want to be the one who revealed it to her), 'You and Mr. Crane are more than you know.'

'I don't know what you're talking about.' The way her face changes, she really doesn't know.

'Tell me, how long have you known him?'

'Two months, more or less.'

An extremely short time, especially considering how desperate she'd been when she showed up at his home begging for him to help her two weeks ago.

'And why have you been able to trust him so, to let him in so completely?'

She doesn't answer. He knows why she doesn't answer, and the answer isn't the problem, it's the lack of it.

'I have many a times dealt with people who were gravely bereaved because of the fate of their loved ones...'

'Mr. Parish, Crane and I get along so well because we understand the weight that the other carries. There aren't half motives and hidden reasons. We are who we are.'

He admires that she believes herself, it's calming.

'And that is why you love him,' he says simply.

'Love? Crane? Me? Yeah, I think not. That's crazy. He's married.'

The last sentence hits a homerun, there would've been no need to point out his marital status. Henry doesn't get the chance to point out what he wants, because at that moment, Mr. Crane begins to rouse and she sinks to her knees beside him. He doesn't need to touch her to know the pattern of her heart.


	5. Chapter 5

'Abbie?'

Her head turns to the side lazily. She doesn't exactly expect to see the source of the voice even though she does. It was so long ago that she last spoke to him, that she believed him to be gone for good. Even from the spirit world.

It's him, it's really him that her eyes fall on. His face is the same as it always has been, serious but full of affection. Without thinking, she strokes a hand across his cheek.

'Corbin,' his name comes out a strained whisper. At the back of her throat, she feels a bubbling sensation, it's highly uncomfortable, painful even. It makes her want to cry.

'Hi, kid.' His smile hasn't changed either. It's not until now (today particularly) that she recognises just how much she misses him. He used to be the one she would spend her time with when she felt like the world would never be an okay place for her. Now that he's gone, she has no one.

'I miss you,' she confesses, wanting very much to be embraced by him.

Her offers her a smile, 'I'm here now.'

Abbie doesn't have an respone for that, she knows his presence is only temporary. Her only response is to look down. The old man cups her chin and lifts her face to look at his.

'You're troubled,' he observes, his eyes scanning her face. Poorly, Abbie attempts to dismiss his observation with a smile, the smile doesn't fully form. Brushing it off is her other option.

'It's nothing.'

Corbin's face turns fatherly, his hand letting her go, 'When have I ever fallen for that?'

Never, she thinks. There's no hiding from this man, he knows her too well.

'It's not important Corbin,' she tries to close the subject again, 'And it will pass.'

'That's where you're wrong kid,' he argues. From his tone, she can tell that he knows what's going on with her. The feeling of confession comes over her, but she fights it.

'It's not important,' she states again, keeping her eyes away from him. She wishes that it wasn't important, because then it wouldn't bother her at all. Today demonstrated just how she doesn't trust Crane anymore. Every fibre in her being is dying to trust him, but something stops her. Even more when he speaks of ways of saving Katrina, like today. Katrina is standing between her trust and Crane, she's blocking the path for her trust to Crane. She's not all that sure that saving the world and fighting evil is priority to him now that Katrina's within reach, she suspects that he's more concerned with getting his wife back.

'You know kid,' Corbin starts, disturbing her thoughts, 'I've never been prouder of you than I am of you since I died. You finally started facing what you've been avoiding your whole life, and you let someone know you in the longest time. I've seen you defend and care for the people you love, and I'm so proud of you Abbie...but you're starting to shut off again.'

'I'm not-' she tries.

'You are. You're using Purgatory as an excuse. You know as well as I do that you don't blame him for leaving you behind.'

Abbie's mouth opens, but no words come out. Corbin knows, he knows what's going on inside her head, her conflict. And he's right, she isn't upset about Purgatory.

'You can deny it all you want,' he speaks before she can, 'and you can believe that lie all you want, but your problem isn't that you don't trust him. It's not that you don't trust him, because you do.' He pauses giving her the time to process what he said. To Abbie, what came out of Corbin's mouth wasn't true. She's struggling to trust Crane again after the map incident. What guarantee does she have that when the opportunity presents itself, he won't betray her again. Because clearly, Katrina comes before anything else to him.

'That's not true anymore,' she tells him, her voice tired. Not particularly amused, Corbin lets out a laugh, his body shaking lightly.

'Oh Abbie,' he says once he gathers himself, 'you are unwilling to find out the truth.'

'What truth?'

'That you love him, and his wife's return means that he can't love you back, that now you'll be nothing to him anymore. You have nothing to worry about kid.'

This time, Abbie laughs, his words are purely false, no truth to them. She doesn't love Crane. And she's not jealous of Katrina, Corbin made it sound like she's jealous of Katrina.

'I care about Crane, I'm not in love with him,' she says.

The old man shakes his head lightly, 'Would it be the worst thing if you were?'

That question is not really a question, either way, she doesn't have an answer, because she doesn't love Crane.

'Hmm?' he urges.

'I don't love him Corbin,' she says boldly.

'I suppose that is why you're here alone thinking about his current plan to get Katrina back. And I suppose that is why you tell yourself over and over that you don't trust him only when he starts speaking about Katrina.'

Abbie replies quickly, 'Because when it comes to Katrina, he doesn't use his head.'

'Like what he does with you?'

His words are spoken with such a certainty that a shadow of doubt creeps into her mind. Thinking about it, he's acted quite impulsively when he thought she was in danger. But no, it's different, and she still doesn't trust him.

'I just don't trust him okay?' Corbin only smiles at first, then takes her hand in his, 'When you stop believing that, then you are ready.'

She frowns in confusion, 'Ready for what?'

A sudden knock sounds from the door, she looks in the direction of the door. When she turns back, she can't feel the hand that was holding hers anymore, Corbin is gone.


End file.
